The Anglican Communion
of 70 million people in 165 countries
welcomes the willingness of the
parties concerned to await the full
results of the work of the United
Nations Inspectors in Iraq. It also
calls on the government of Iraq
to comply fully with United Nations
resolutions and to cooperate with
the inspectors in their tasks.
The Anglican Communion also recommends
to the United Nations member states,
that subject to reports from UN
Weapons Inspectors, for sanctions,
except for materials that could
be used for weapons of mass destruction,
to be lifted.
The Anglican Consultative Council
also affirms its solidarity with
the position taken by the Episcopal
Church, USA, in June 2002, in opposing
unilateral military action against
Iraq by the United States, and with
the views expressed by the Presiding
Bishop in his statements in 2002
and 2003 that:
1. War holds the prospect of destabilizing
the Middle East and we will all
be better served to see our national
energies and resources expended
in resolving the Israeli/Palestinian
conflict, such that Israel finds
security and peace with its neighbors
and Palestinians achieve statehood;
2. Military action would surely
inflame the passions of millions,
particularly in the Arab world,
setting in motion cycles of violence
and retaliation, further straining
tenuous relationships that exist
between the United States and other
nations;
| 3. The United States has the opportunity
to express leadership in the world
by forging a foreign policy that
seeks to reconcile and heal the
world’s divisions and reflect
its values and ideals by focussing
upon issues of poverty, disease
and despair, not only within the
US but throughout the global community
of which it is a apart.
